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LYLE – The Lyle-Pacelli boys basketball team had too much trouble getting into its offense against Spring Grove’s pressure zone defense as the Lions snapped LP’s 11-game winning streak with a 46-40 win in Lyle Friday.

The Athletics (17-3 overall) scattered 25 turnovers and many of them came early in possessions, but they were able to hang around and they had a chance in the late minutes. Buay Koak scored on a post move to bring LP within 42-40 with less than a minute left, but Koak’s game-tying attempt from eight-feet away rimmed out with 25 seconds left.

The Lions (17-1 overall) ran away with the game when Jacob Olerud hit two free throws and he also converted a steal for a score to beat the buzzer.

“We’re fine. We’ll get another shot at them. We know what to work on,” LP head coach Carl Truckenmiller said. “We struggled with getting into our sets. We would get a stop and then you go down and throw it into a guy’s foot.”

The Athletics never led throughout the night, but they were able to tie the game a couple of times. Landon Meyer capped a 7-0 LP burst with a three to tie it up 32 with 8:11 left and Koak, who had 11 points, six rebounds and three blocks, hit a jumper to tie the game at 34 with 6:58 left.

SG scored the first 14 points of the game as they held the Athletics scoreless for a 13-minute stretch. LP finally snapped out of its slump when Jake Truckeniller hit his first of four first half three-pointers to bring his team within 14-3 with 6:33 left in the first half. Truckenmiller finished with 15 points.

“They’re long and they pressure the ball,” Carl Truckenmiller said. “It took us a while to get things figured out and Jake finally got us back in it. They’re pressure was legitimate and they’re a great team, but I feel like we played one of our worst games and we were still in it at the end.”

Trey Anderson finished with two points, eight rebounds and three steals for LP.

The Lions have now won 15 in a row.

SG 19  27  –  46

LP 15  25  –  40

LP scoring: Jake Truckenmiller, 15; Buay Koak, 11; Hunter Bauer, 5; Mac Nelson, 4; Landon Meyer, 3; Trey Anderson, 2